A top pick with a twist

The Giants’ top draft pick, Lincecum was asked about his wacky delivery, and he dropped names such as Sandy Koufax and Bob Feller during a conference call with reporters.

Lincecum had been briefed on the Hall of Fame pitchers by his dad, who was a big fan of Koufax, and his college pitching coach, who showed him pictures of Feller. Lincecum also mentioned Kevin Brown, because of his “Luis Tiant kind of turn away from the plate.”

That’s a lot of history for a junior in college, and now the Giants hope Lincecum can create his own history.

He was taken with the 10th overall pick, the Giants’ highest selection since 1997. At the University of Washington, where he was projected by some insiders to be a top-five selection, Lincecum collected 199 strikeouts to lead the nation, and he went 12-4 with a 1.94 ERA in 22 games, including 17 starts. Every nine innings, he averaged 14.3 K’s.

Maybe he lasted until 10th because of his size (nobody thinks he’s 6 foot except for him) or unorthodox delivery (Dontrelle Willis has nothing on this guy), but the Giants weren’t complaining.

“We’re not disheartened by this. This is a good thing for the Giants,” said Dick Tidrow, the director of player development. “This guy’s going to be a big-league pitcher for a while.”

He’ll cost a lot, between $2 million and $3 million, but the Giants were eager to make a splash on draft day after misfiring on a number of occasions in the past.

Plus, when a guy can talk about being like Koufax and Feller, it’s hard to pass on him.